A New Beginning
by freakily obsessed Yassen fan
Summary: Set in the gap between Moscow and Malagosto when MI6 didn't know where Yassen was. My first Fanfic so please read and review! And yes, I suck at summaries...
1. Arrival

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Yassen Gregorovich or John Rider! And this first bit is slow... I'm sorry but it had to happen, it'll get better!

Yassen Gregorovich stood on deck, his hands tucked behind his back. The biting December wind whipped around him but he seemed oblivious. As he stood there he swept the port with his ice blue eyes, looking for something, anything. He loved to do this, just standing, watching. He noticed things that others didn't. Like the man.

He was standing a little way away on the pavement, looking at the ferry as it came into Dover, but his face wasn't moving, it remained focused on the front deck, where Yassen was stood. As Yassen stared down at him, the man suddenly moved, darting under cover and vanishing.

Yassen started slightly as a tinny voice rang out over the deck, warning people to get back into their vehicles. He sighed and turned away from the white cliffs, ducking through the door and finding himself looking down on a corridor packed with people, all of them talking to each other.

He moved slowly down the steps, his eyes darted everywhere, searching for anything suspicious. It would be ridiculously unfair if he was shot now. He didn't see anyone looking his way and ducked into the corridor where he was instantly swept away by the press of people.

Yassen had long ago memorised the map of the ship and now made his unerring way to the blue staircase. He stood by the gate and waited.

The girl appeared from nowhere, grabbing his arm and pulling him down the steps, Yassen was surprised, he had expected someone else. When they made it to the car deck he followed her to a dark blue Vauxhall Vectra. He saw a man sitting in the driver's seat and opened the back door quickly, sliding across to sit directly behind the driver.

"You ok?" he asked quietly.

"You keep that Russian mouth of yours shut until we're out of here. Or I'll shut it for you," The man growled, waving at the girl to get her attention. She turned towards him and nodded, then slid into the passenger seat of a car in front.

Yassen was impressed, SCORPIA had arranged this perfectly, no one would be able to track him and the Vauxhall was totally unremarkable.

The man in the front seat, who's only name was Spider, started the engine and they rolled out into the golden sunlight. They got out of the port without incident and were soon accelerating down the motorway. Yassen leant forwards.

"Where are we going?" he demanded, Spider ignored him, his mouth working rhythmically as he chewed on a piece of gum, "Hey. I asked where we're going!"

Spider glared at Yassen in the mirror, "And I didn't answer. Tough luck, mate. And I'm not telling you where we're headed until you've been checked." Yassen sat back, frowning slightly.

He turned his head to the window and gazed moodily out at the darkening landscape. They drove in silence for another hour or so before puling in to a petrol station. Spider led Yassen into the men's toilets and directed him to a door at the far end. The sign said "Staff only" but, although Yassen hesitated, they didn't stop. Once the door had clicked shut behind them, Yassen had a look around; they were in a gleaming room, certainly no cleaner's cupboard; there was a table in the centre of the room but no other furniture except a single chair at a desk.

"Ok, you need to strip." Spider ordered. Yassen hesitated but complied, placing his clothes on the table and shivering as his feet rested on the cold tiles. Spider checked his entire body for bugs, and then each item of his clothing before Yassen was allowed to dress again.

"Well, I'm impressed, you're in excellent shape. A bit malnourished but that's to be expected. The Mafia aren't the kindest people." Spider glanced down at a sheaf of paper and flicked through quickly. "It says here that you're quite hot-headed. That stops now. There isn't room for emotion in our job, and definitely not anger." Yassen opened his mouth to protest but decided against it and nodded.

"Will you tell me where you're taking me now?" he asked. His eyes were darting around the room, he was naturally wary of the man in front of him; he seemed to have no feeling at all. Spider was a name that suited him; he looked just as deadly as one. Yassen had already chosen the name that he would go by, Cossack.

"Yes, you're clean. We're going to a facility in Cornwall, a sort of half-way house before you go to Venice." Yassen nodded, Spider hadn't told him the exact location but what did he care? He would find out soon enough.

Spider led him back out of the room and, a few minutes later, they were climbing into another car. This one was an Audi A4, perfect for the long drive ahead, and considerably speedier than the Vectra. Yassen sat in the passenger seat this time. Spider dug some food out of a bag on the back seat and gave him an apple to eat as they pulled onto the motorway. Yassen ignored it and leant his head against the cool glass of the window.


	2. Fresh start

**Disclaimer: I don't own Yassen! **And I'm sorry it's a bit slow, it will get better!!! Promise!

Yassen awoke next morning with a stiff neck; he had fallen asleep slumped against the passenger door. He eased his aching muscles back to life and opened his eyes, squinting in the bright sunlight. They had stopped moving. Spider was sitting beside him, alert and tense.

"Sleep well?" He asked tersely, Yassen nodded jerkily and looked around him.

They had parked in a large car park above a beach, he could see a distant cliff off to his right, to his left he could see a small town with a lifeboat station dominating the shoreline.

"Where are we?" Yassen croaked. His mouth was dry as sandpaper. He forced saliva into it as Spider answered.

"Sennen Cove."

"Where?" Yassen repeated. Spider's mouth tightened impatiently,

"Sennen Cove," he snapped, "we're about a mile from Land's End." Oh, Yassen looked again at the tiny village.

"And _this _is where SCORPIA send their trainees? It's dead," he said scornfully. Spider looked at him distastefully, he hated having to take the trainees here, they all thought exactly the same as Yassen did.

"Yes," he said, his voice suddenly lower and much more threatening. "This is where trainee assassins come. If you don't like it, then tough, because you're staying here until they want you on Malagosto." Yassen sat back, temporarily subdued.

"Fine, where am I staying?" he asked brusquely, looking all around him.

"There," Spider said, pointing. "Ask for Terry." Spider got out of the car and opened Yassen's door. Yassen got out and followed Spider to the back of the car. In the boot was a large suitcase. Yassen heaved it out and looked questioningly at Spider.

"It's clothes. They should be in your size. There are a couple of…other things in there too so don't open it until you're in the room. Good luck." With that, Spider got back into the car and drove off, Yassen watched him out of sight, suddenly feeling strangely lonely.

Yassen dragged the heavy case across the car park and into the hotel that Spider had pointed out to him. The building was painted white with wooden beams showing through in places. He caught the name as he passed the sign, "The Old Success Inn". Yassen pushed open the door and made his was up a thinly carpeted stairway, the suitcase bumping loudly against the steps. He rang the bell on the desk and glanced around the office. A young man came out from behind a door and walked over to the desk.

"Can I help you?" he asked, looking Yassen up and down with one eyebrow raised.

"I'm looking for…um…Terry," He said, leaning forwards against the desk.

"Yeah? Who said anything about Terry?" the man was suddenly obstructive, and his eyes glinted suspiciously.

"Spider told me to ask for you. Spare me the theatrics and give me my key." Terry scowled and unhooked a key from one of the hooks.

"You're in room eleven." He said, pushing the key into Yassen's hand, "You've been paid for as long as you stay here. Someone will call for you tomorrow morning to take you to breakfast." Yassen nodded and made his way across the large lounge; he opened the door on the far side and made his way up to his room. The room was reasonably sized, a large double bed was set against one wall and a door opened into a small bathroom.

Yassen dropped the huge suitcase on the floor and sat on the bed. He could hear the waves breaking softly on the sand, just fifty yards away. He tossed the key onto the duvet beside him and slumped backwards.

When he woke, hardly aware that he had slept at all, the sun was starting over the sea. Yassen guessed it was about three o'clock in the afternoon. Pangs of hunger gripped his stomach and he rolled reluctantly off the bed and left the room, slipping the key into his pocket. Yassen walked out of the hotel and set off down the road, looking for a place where he could eat. He had a little money; Spider had given him some to ensure he wouldn't starve before the next morning. A fish and chip shop filled the air with the distinctive smell and Yassen followed his nose to the counter.

Once he had got the paper wrapped package Yassen set off the other way and wandered down to the beach. He sat at the top of a large rock and watched the tide coming in as he ate. The sun sank lower, setting the sky and water on fire, for the first time in months, Yassen felt himself start to relax. This place may be dead, but it was exactly what he needed.

Far off by the cliffs a couple walked hand in hand, Yassen watched them jealously, that was the worst thing about his future job, there was no space for a love life, love clouded your judgement and gave you a weakness. But he still wished that he could feel that way, just once. Most seventeen year old boys had girlfriends, but he had no one, not even a normal friend. At least not here, a couple of friends back in Russia but they would have forgotten him by now. Yassen had never felt so lonely.

He tore his eyes away from the couple and jumped off of the rock. He landed in water, the sea had come in dramatically while his mind had been elsewhere and the water was up to his waist.

He swore loudly in Russian and started wading through the choppy water. It was freezing cold, despite the pleasant day it was still December. By the time he reached the shore, Yassen couldn't feel his feet; he was shivering violently and hoped fervently that the hotel had towels.

As he walked stiffly up the beach, a faint movement caught his eye, a person had been sitting at the top of the hill and they had just got up. Yassen watched as their silhouette disappeared from view. He shook himself and jogged up the slipway. He slipped guiltily through the front door and raced up to his room, thankfully the key was still in his pocket and he let himself into the room.

He stripped and stood in the shower, feeling himself coming back to life as the hot water poured over his body. He took the opportunity to examine himself, the bruises on his arms had faded slightly now, but the largest one, covering half his chest, was still dark purple, giving him a painful reminder of his time in Moscow. When he came out he wrapped the towel around his waist and pulled the curtains closed. He turned back and walked over to the black suitcase on the floor; he heaved it onto the bed and flicked it open.

As Spider had said, it was full of clothes, which were about his size. In the middle of the case there was a gun and ten boxes of rounds. He ran his eyes over the short barrel and ribbed stock, it wasn't a very good looking weapon but it would do. He picked it up, feeling the perfect fit and realising that it had been made for him. Yassen pulled a shirt aside and saw another weapon, this was a knife; he flicked it open, eyeing the broad blade with a practiced eye.

He nodded as he closed the knife. He was satisfied with the weapons and the clothes. He lay back on the bed; his melancholy mood had sapped his strength.

At seven, Yassen went out again; he had changed into blue jeans and a white shirt with a black jacket. He wandered along the pavement looking out at the faint white tops of the waves. He sat for a while on a bench before wandering slowly back to the hotel, he ordered a salad at the restaurant in the pub and ate quickly. He didn't want to have to sit there alone, people were staring at him.

As soon as he had eaten, Yassen left the pub; he felt out of place here and wanted to be alone. He almost laughed, just hours before he had wished that he didn't have to be alone and now he was actually seeking solitude.

Yassen hesitated at the door, wondering which way to go, he turned right with a vague idea of climbing the hill he had seen earlier. As he reached the mouth of the path at the far side of the car park he had woken up in that morning a young woman came into sight.

"Hi," She said, flashing him a brilliant smile before brushing past him and moving down the path. Yassen turned to watch her go before setting off again, he ignored the steep steps leading up the hill and followed the path that the girl had come along. Yassen watched the ground, following the girl's footprints. The air carried the sound of the waves breaking but he couldn't hear anything else, there was no traffic on the road and the night air was still.

As the sky darkened further from navy to black, Yassen turned back and tried to follow the path back, unfortunately the footprints were now hidden in the darkness. Yassen cursed himself for not paying more attention and looked all around, his eyes scouring the night for a sign of civilisation. Nothing, even the waves seemed to have abandoned him, he couldn't hear them any more.

He tried to retrace his steps, but it was impossible to do in the darkness and he soon gave up. He groaned loudly and sank down onto the floor. He cradled his head in his arms.

"Hello…is someone there?" Yassen jumped and stared around, a white light was shining from around a corner. He got to his feet and came down onto the path, shielding his eyes with his arm, while holding the other hand in the air.

"Yeah, I got lost. Sorry if I scared you." He raised the other arm as the woman lowered her torch.

"Don't worry about it," She said "Why are you here?"

"What do you mean?" he asked quickly.

"Well, you're not from around here are you? Your accent is Russian, I think, or German…? I'm not sure but you're definitely not British." Yassen cursed silently but hid his emotion.

"I'm Russian, look, how do I get back to town?"

"Keep the sea on your right. I might see you around." Yassen nodded and set off, suddenly able to hear the waves again. He hoped that he wouldn't see the woman for a second time; he didn't want any friends here. Within two minutes he was within sight of Sennen, he had been so close. From there it was easy and he was soon back in the hotel. He didn't want to sit alone in his room so he curled up in an armchair in the lounge.

He was curious about the person that he was going to meet tomorrow, he wondered what they were for, how would they help him? He mused on this for almost an hour, at ten he finally unfolded his body and went back to his room.

He pulled off his jacket and jeans and fell into the bed. He turned the lamp off and was instantly asleep.


	3. Allies

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Yassen! And BIG BIG thanks to the people who have reviewed!!

The next morning, at eight o'clock exactly, he was woken by a series of sharp raps on the door. He rolled onto the floor and dragged himself upright. When he had wrapped the duvet back around his body, he opened the door a crack.

"Yes?" God, his voice was awful in the mornings. He shook his head and tried to focus on the figure in front of him. No no no! Yassen closed his eyes, hoping that when he opened them the person at the door would have gone. She wasn't, the woman from last night was standing in his doorway.

"Hi, I thought it would be you," She said brightly. "I'm Laura." She held out her hand. Yassen looked at her. She withdrew the hand.

"Yassen," He rasped. "I'll be down in ten minutes." He tried to shut the door but Laura rammed her foot into the gap and pushed it open further.

"Five minutes, and you better learn some manners, because I will not put up with any lip from trainees, ok?" Laura's eyes were suddenly hard and Yassen noticed the faint bulge at her hip. That, more than anything else, made him nod.

"See you in five minutes then," He said, pushing the door shut as she turned away.

Six minutes later, Yassen arrived in the breakfast room dressed in the same jeans he had worn the night before, but with a soft grey jersey instead of the t-shirt.

He looked around the room he had just entered, it obviously belonged here, a place where fishing came before anything else. Fishing nets and lobster pots decorated the ceiling and paintings were hung around the walls.

Laura was sitting at a table near the wall, under a huge oil painting of waves crashing against some cliffs. He went over to join her.

"Morning, help yourself to toast." She hadn't looked up from the paper that she was poring over. Yassen slid into the seat opposite her and took a piece of toast from the silver rack.

"Thanks," He said, remembering her remonstration about manners. He looked around the table, there were another two places set but no one was anywhere near them. "Why are there two extra places?"

"There are another two people, why else?" Laura had still not looked at him, not that he minded, but it would be nice if she acknowledged his existence.

Almost as she spoke, two people walked into the room. A man in his late twenties and the girl Yassen had seen the night before. He looked from one to the other, wondering if they were a couple. He watched the man more closely though, he had the same dangerous glint in his eyes as Spider did; he was an assassin. They sat down opposite each other and reached for toast. The girl was slightly older than Yassen, perhaps nineteen or twenty, and she didn't have the same hard quality in her features.

The man leant across and kissed Laura on the cheek, making her look up; she didn't seem to have noticed the two others until then. She glanced around,

"Yassen, this is Jack and Holly, you two, this is Yassen. He's Russian." He wondered briefly why she had added that, until Jack and Holly started speaking fluent Russian.

"How old are you? Whereabouts in Russia are you from? Why are you here?" the questions seemed never ending and he gave up answering them after a few minutes.

As he ate, Yassen listened to the others, he gathered that Holly was another trainee, Jack was her trainer. He also learned a little about what they would get him to do while he was here, lots of endurance and agility exercises, though he wasn't able to tell exactly what as they had lapsed back into English and he was tired of constantly translating.

After they had finished, Laura leant forward, "Ok, this is what happens here, our job is to get you into a fit state to move onwards to Malagosto. We'll take you out for training, martial arts and weapons, and endurance, so swimming, horse riding and rock climbing." She glanced sympathetically in Yassen's direction, "Yassen, you'll be up at five from now on, so no more lie ins. We'll meet you on the beach and you'll both go for a run before breakfast. Holly, you go with Jack, I'll show Yassen around."

They walked down to the beach, then up the hill, there was a gun placement from the war at the peak of the hill and Laura stood on the roof, pointing out all the local landmarks, the lighthouse on the horizon, the path away from Sennen to Land's End, the lifeboat station, the breakwater. Yassen sat on the edge, wondering what he had let himself in for.

Finally, Laura ran out of things to talk about, Yassen didn't talk back and she was fed up with talking to herself.

"And that's about it," She said, Yassen perked up instantly; "you can go anywhere in Sennen and Land's End, but nowhere else. Understood?" Yassen nodded and turned away, then turned back,

"Can I have some money? I spent all of the stuff Spider gave me." Laura's mouth tightened, "Please can I have some money?" He corrected, and Laura relaxed. She pulled her purse out and tugged a fifty pound note out.

"That's to last until Monday." She said as she walked away. Yassen stood still for a second, wondering what to do with the free time he now found himself facing. He swept the ocean and cliffs with his eyes before deciding to walk over to Land's End. He could do with the exercise.

Ten minutes later he stood at the foot of a massively steep hill, concrete steps led most of the way up, but they were steep and sloping. He walked up the first few and found that his total lack of exercise had taken a huge toll on his fitness and muscle tone. By the time he reached the brow of the hill he was drenched in sweat and totally out of breath.

He leant against the wall of a building that Laura had pointed out earlier and looked back at Sennen, the village looked distant already, he could see the hotel in the distance, the gun emplacement on the hill opposite. The sea was a fantastic shade of blue in the cold December sunlight and the cliffs looked almost gold.

Yassen took all this in and started to appreciate the beauty of the place. He walked the remaining distance in a little over half an hour; he dawdled along the path, stopping to climb rocks every now and then. When he reached Land's End, he sat on the wall and looked out to sea; the lighthouse had vanished in a thick ocean fog which was coming towards land. Yassen watched it for a while, his depressive mood from the night before sliding back into his mind.

He would never admit to anyone here, but he desperately missed his parents, parents whose faces he could barely recall anymore. Guilty tears filled his eyes at the thought but he brushed them angrily away and swallowed the sob which rose in his throat.

"Yassen?" The voice made him jump, "Are you ok?" he twisted around, dashing the tears from his face to look at Holly. She was stood a few feet away, clutching a riding helmet, her face looked concerned, but the emotion didn't reach her eyes.

"I'm fine," He replied shortly, "Aren't you supposed to be doing training or something?" he knew he sounded rude, but he didn't care, let them think what they liked. Holly's face dropped back into its usual blank expression, hiding her emotions as well as if she was standing behind a wall. Behind her, Yassen saw the fog roll over the edge of the cliff.

"I've just finished riding; I was going to run back to Sennen for lunch before climbing later on." There was a defensive edge to her voice and Yassen smiled, knowing that it was him who had put it there. "Do you want to come back with me?" Holly asked, before smiling at him, her look a mirror image of his.

"No thanks. I don't much like running." Yassen tried to make his voice as polite as possible, but he could hear the defiance and anger that layered his voice. Holly could clearly hear it too because she stepped back, her eyes full of anger and, unless Yassen was imagining it, hurt. When she spoke though, she sounded totally in control and polite,

"Ok then, but you'll have to run tomorrow morning so if I was you, I'd learn to like running as fast as possible." She turned on her heel and stormed off, the thick fog swallowing her in an instant. Yassen looked all around, he could barely see ten feet away, he swore quietly and then raised his voice,

"Holly? Holly, can you hear me?" he took a few steps following her but stopped, he didn't have a clue which way she could have gone. He cursed again and yelled Holly's name over and over. Eventually he gave up and went the other way, he had a vague idea of finding the road and following it back to Sennen, he was searching for almost half an hour before he finally found the tarmac sweeping between the hand-built stone walls.

He followed it along for what seemed like an age, never able to see more than ten feet in any direction, until finally he found a turning guarded by a massive sign with the words "Whitsand Bay" splashed across a blue background. He turned in and followed a path down the steep hill. It ran beside the road for a bit before turning away.

Yassen hesitated for a brief instant, unsure of which way to go. After a second's deliberation, he continued down the path which curved steeply down to a set of rocky and uneven steps.

When he reached the bottom, Yassen almost laughed; he was at the place where he had first met Holly. From there it was seconds before he was back in the lounge in the hotel, having sprinted across the car park and up the stairs.

Holly was sitting on the wide window sill, peering through the old-fashioned telescope at the fog, which was now, infuriatingly, clearing. Yassen went over and stood at the side of the window, watching the hypnotising swirls of grey against grey.

"You know, if you wanted help, you could have asked and I would have come back." Holly hadn't looked round at him; he looked down at the back of her head, her russet red hair and her hunched shoulders. He moved a little closer and sat down on the edge of the sill, turning his back on the grey light outside.

"Sor… Well, I didn't know that did I?" Holly glanced round at him then, her eyes reproachful, Yassen realised that he had said something wrong, but didn't care. Let her think what she liked about him, what did he care?

"That was nearly an apology. It's a start, I guess, but if you're going to be rude, then don't do it when Laura or Jack are around. Laura can floor you with a finger, and Jack can move faster then you can blink. And by move, I mean draw, aim and put 5 bullets in your leg. They're good." Holly's voice was full of admiration as she talked about her mentor. Yassen nodded, feeling lonely again in her face of her obviously close friendship with Jack, and… jealous? No, not jealous. Definitely not…still…Yassen snapped himself out of his emotional probing and turned to look at Holly. Time to bite the bullet,

"Look, maybe we got off on the wrong foot. I don't want friends here, but acquaintances might be ok. Truce?" Yassen swayed slightly, what had he just said? He took a deep breath and looked up at Holly as she answered.

"Ok, truce," She said. "But even acquaintances need to know something other than the others' first name. My full name is Holly Amber Jones; I'm nineteen years old and was born in Keswick, in The Lake District on 28th July. Your turn…" she was suddenly much friendlier, Yassen felt a little wrong-footed but recovered quickly.

"I don't know my middle name; I don't think I have one, but my full name as I know it is Yassen Gregorovich. I was born and raised in Estrov, in Russia. My birthday is 20th of October. Happy now?" Holly nodded, gazing out of the window again. Somehow, Yassen felt a little less lonely now, he was glad he had tried to clear the air between them, Holly wasn't too bad really.

"Why are you here?" she asked suddenly. "What made you want to be part of SCORPIA?" Yassen opened his mouth to answer, then shut it again and thought for a minute.

"My parents, they were killed in an accident. I just didn't care what I did after that and I somehow ended up here. I guess the idea just grew on me, I worked with the Mafia in Moscow for about three years and I saw lots of death, and eventually, it didn't affect me and I didn't care who died." He paused, surprised at the words, and more surprised by the truth in them, "What about you? Why are you here?"

Holly turned around and looked at him, her eyes suddenly spilling tears down her cheeks.

"I don't know. I thought I did but, it's just hard, I don't think I could kill." She let out a shaky laugh. "Imagine that, an assassin afraid of killing. Sorry about this, I'm going up to my room." She was on her feet and through the door before Yassen could react, and even if he could have reacted, what would he have said? He sat on the sill, watching the sky clearing and the water become blue again.

Holly had somehow managed to open parts of his soul that he had blocked out. He was running through their conversation in his head, stunned at how much he had told her. He hadn't spoken to anyone like that since his mother died.

He saw movement on the pavement below and, looking down, realised that it was Jack, he was walking around outside, looking alternately at his watch and in the direction of the lifeboat station. Yassen watched him for a while, wondering what he was doing. Suddenly he remembered what Holly had said while they were at Land's End. She had rock climbing that afternoon.

Yassen pushed the stiff wooden window open and leant out. "Jack, she's in her room. She was upset about something." Jack had looked up at the sound of his name, his right hand moving instantly to his hip, to the pistol tucked into his waistband. By the time Yassen had finished talking, he was already at the corner of the building.

Yassen tugged the window back into place and stood up as Jack entered the lounge; he didn't look at Yassen but went straight to the door and swept up the stairs. Yassen followed quickly, wondering what the huge worry was about.

He found out soon enough; Holly was lying on the floor of her tiny bathroom, blood pulsing strongly from a vertical slash on her wrist, several other scars intertwined on her skin. Jack was kneeling at her side, his hand clamped tightly around her arm, just above the gash on her wrist.

Hope you enjoyed that chapter... Please review, they make me feel so much better!


	4. New Arrival

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Yassen... or John Rider

Yassen fell to his knees in the bloody pool surrounding Holly and gazed at her pale face. Jack looked at him and said something. Yassen stared back, his face empty, nothing made sense. Jack repeated it again, then yelled it, Yassen still didn't understand. Finally Jack slapped him with his free hand, "Get Laura, NOW!"

Yassen nodded quickly and scrambled to his feet. Laura… where was she? He burst back into the bathroom and asked jack told him and he raced out into the passageway. He reached the right door within seconds and pounded on it until it opened, Laura was there, looking bemused at the noise. There wasn't enough time to explain so Yassen just grabbed her arm and hauled her back to Holly's room.

As soon as she saw Holly, Laura shook Yassen off and moved forwards. Jack moved out of her way and told her quickly what he thought had happened. Yassen watched silently as Laura inspected the wound. She clearly knew what she was doing and did it flawlessly.

The bleeding had all but stopped, but from the large pool of it all around Holly's limp body, she had lost an enormous amount of blood. Yassen followed Laura's every move with his sharp gaze. He didn't move as they talked quietly, checking her vital signs; she was still alive, but only just.

When they were certain that the bleeding had totally finished, Laura got Jack to release his hold and went to her room to find her surgical thread. Yassen sank down onto Holly's bed, grateful that he hadn't lost a possible friend. He replayed their conversation in his mind again, this time hearing the words she edited out of the answers she had given him.

The afternoon passed quickly after that. Holly was moved into Jack's room to be closer to Laura; their rooms were connected by a door. Jack and Yassen cleaned the blood from the bathroom and moved Jack's belongings into Holly's room. They didn't speak, though Yassen felt as though the older man had accepted him more than he had that morning.

That night, Yassen went to his room early; he had eaten dinner in the fish and chip shop because he couldn't find the energy, or the inclination to do anything else. As he sank into his bed, he couldn't keep the images of Holly lying in pools of her blood out of his mind. It was like they had been branded onto his eyes. Even sleep brought no relief, dreams merged into one another, never clear, but always full of blood.

At four thirty, Yassen got out of bed and dressed, it was dark outside but Yassen knew that he would still be expected to run, probably with a torch. He sat in the lounge until five and then went outside, unsure of where to meet the person, presumably Jack as Laura was looking after Holly. At ten past, no one had come out so Yassen crept back inside, a torch was lying on the front desk and he took it and put it into his pocket. He lingered for a bit longer then went back outside and set off.

He ran slowly at first, allowing his eyes to adjust to the darkness, he didn't light the torch; he couldn't see any need to. As the sky paled, his speed increased, he had run along the pavement to a path, and then followed it up the steep gradient. He hadn't slowed down or walked, he ran the whole way, slowly feeling himself unwind. When he reached the top of the hill his breath was coming in short bursts and a stitch burned his side. He jogged along the pavement and came to the turning he had seen the day before, he ran towards the hill, and then altered his course slightly so he was running to the concrete bunker on the hillside.

He stood on the edge in the same way he had stood on the deck of the ferry, alert and tense, watching the sunlight touch the ocean. He couldn't believe that he had only been here for two days, it seemed like an age. He heard footsteps and looked around in time to see Holly stumble over the rocks into view.

She hadn't seen him yet- he was still stood in shadow. She moved down the hill and froze when she saw him. She smiled faintly and waved a heavily bandaged hand. Yassen walked along the wall and climbed up to her.

"Morning," he said, "shouldn't you still be in bed?" she shrugged and looked away. Yassen smiled, realising that she'd sneaked out, and that she must have been unbelievably quiet to escape undetected.

"I couldn't just lie there," She muttered defensively, "I'm sorry I lied to you. I suffered from depression for six years and I can't always control it, even now. I'm sorry you had to see that." Yassen nodded and gently touched her arm to show he understood. She looked up at him, suddenly realising that he was much taller than her, he was smiling gently and she couldn't help but smile in return.

"You were right," He said abruptly, "I do like running now." Holly laughed.

"I told you that you would like it! Why didn't you believe me?" Yassen shrugged, and then his eyes lit up.

"Maybe, if you like, we could run together from now on. It might make you feel less depressed. It's for my health too by the way, I can't do repeats of last night too often, it's definitely not good for my heart." Holly smiled and turned to look at the sea. They stood in silence for a while before walking down the hill. They didn't talk until they got back to the hotel, Yassen changed and they went down to breakfast together.

Laura was standing in the doorway, glaring at Holly, who seemed to shrink.

"Where have you been?" she hissed, her eyes flashing dangerously, "I've been looking for you everywhere." Yassen walked past the two of them, touched Holly's arm gently, sympathetically, and went to the table where Jack was sitting, chewing slowly on a spoonful of cereal. He looked up as Yassen sat down and nodded to him. Yassen returned the gesture and helped himself to toast.

He gazed out of the window as he ate, his ears straining to hear Laura and Holly. He could hear Laura's voice, but not the words. Holly was silent, and when he turned quickly he saw that she was crying. Anger bubbled up inside him but he held his tongue, not wanting to jeopardise his chances.

When they came over, Laura's mouth was a thin line and Holly's face was wet and red from crying. She slid into the seat next to Yassen and reached for the toast. Yassen got there first and handed her a piece, she took it gratefully and they ate in silence.

Afterwards, Yassen was told that he was going to be paired with Jack for the next few days, until Holly was able to continue her training. As he stood up, Yassen gently touched Holly's hand, trying to comfort her. She smiled weakly up at him and then walked off with Laura.

Jack sent Yassen up to his room to change into his swimming trunks and wetsuit. They were going kayaking. Ten minutes later Yassen stood shivering outside the hotel while Jack went to get the boats. He sat on the wall and watched the sea.

When Jack came back he had a kayak on each shoulder, they were both quite short, with no recognisable logo or make.

"They're prototypes, brand new design," Jack explained quickly as they made their way down the slipway. Yassen nodded looking at the piles of equipment that Jack had stuffed into the cockpits of both boats. When they got to the pile of rocks that Yassen had sat on a few days earlier, Jack put the boats down and explained what each piece of equipment was for and how you wore it.

Jack went through safety techniques and basic paddle stroke while they were on the beach before dragging Yassen in his boat to the waters edge and handing him a paddle. Jack carried his boat out a bit into the water and got in. He came back and heaved Yassen off of the sand. Luckily the sea was calm and the waves were scarcely two inches high, even though Yassen had been told that they could get to be taller than him.

They paddled out a bit, Yassen going in never ending circles at first before being corrected. They fooled around for a while; Jack was constantly giving Yassen advice. In less than half an hour, Yassen was feeling quite confident about his paddling.

"Ok. You're not bad for a beginner. We'll go for a paddle to Land's End, then we can do some riding, I have some spare clothes for you," Jack added as Yassen opened his mouth. Yassen nodded and followed Jack past the lifeboat station and sea wall. Once they were beyond it, the sea got noticeably rougher, but not enough to knock Yassen off balance. He put in a few low brace strokes to keep himself steady and chased after Jack.

"Is Holly going to be ok?" he called. Jack stopped paddling, his head bowed.

"I hope so," he said quietly. "I picked her up a few weeks ago in London. She was an unknown, not like you. I saw her kicking the crap out of some unlucky mugger and thought that she had some potential. So I brought her here. I didn't know about her…history then."

"How did you find out? Sorry," He added as he crashed the kayak into the back of Jack's.

"She told me. Straight out, just walked up and said that she had been suicidal for six years. It was a bit of a shock." He laughed shortly, harshly. Yassen smiled grimly and concentrated on paddling.

It took them about half an hour to get to the foot of the cliffs at Land's End; Jack then took hold of both boats and all their kit and started climbing. Yassen watched from the floor, his mouth hanging open in amazement.

He stood there until Jack had disappeared over the cliff top and then started up after him, he tried to put his feet where Jack had placed his and found that if he really concentrated, he could do this quite easily. When he got to the top he found Jack sitting on a rock, holding a set of dry clothes.

"Thanks," Yassen said and Jack shrugged,

"I was about to come and get you. Holly took ages to get up there on her own. Now get changed." Jack turned away while Yassen struggled into a pair of navy jodhpurs and a thick sweatshirt. There was a pair of riding boots lying next to Jack and Yassen pulled them on, feeling ridiculous.

"I'm ready," He said finally, checking himself over. Jack looked him up and down and nodded.

"You'll do. Come on then." He turned and led the way through the gorse and heather to the stable. It was made of wood, set around a courtyard containing a large outdoor school. Horses' heads hung over the half doors and a woman's voice drifted from the nearest stall.

Jack walked over to it and peered inside, "Hi Mel," He said. "Come out here, we've got a new trainee."

"Another one? How many do you have now? I haven't seen that Adam guy for a while."

"Yeah, he's gone to Italy." Jack explained quickly, "Anyway, this is Yassen. Yassen, this is Melissa who prefers to be called Mel." They shook hands and Yassen found himself being scrutinised by a pair of dark brown eyes which seemed to look right through him.

He looked away as Jack spoke again, "Yassen, Mel will teach you how to ride. Do exactly what she says or you'll have to answer to me." Yassen nodded and followed Mel into a nearby stable; a large chestnut gelding was tied in a corner, he looked up and snorted as they approached.

"This is Russet," She said. "He's eight years old, sixteen hands. I think you'll get on ok. He has social problems, too." Yassen looked up sharply, but Mel didn't seem to notice. He shook his head and moved forward to stroke Russet. The horse looked at him from his lofty height and then dipped his head so Yassen could rub his forehead. Mel watched from the door, a small smile lifting her lips.

"He's nice. I think he likes me," Yassen said, allowing a small grin to creep onto his face.

"Yes, I think he does. Now come and help me with this tack." Yassen followed her into the tack room and had Russet's saddle and bridle thrust upon him. Mel led him back to the stall and showed him how to tack Russet up. He twisted the straps of the bridle again and again, getting more and more frustrated each time. Mel watched silently.

Finally Yassen forced himself to calm down and worked through it slowly, it worked and the bridle slid on without a hitch.

"Well done. Now do the saddle." Mel ordered. Yassen sighed loudly but complied. He was surprised that he managed to do it first time but hid his emotions, trying to practice the blank expression that Jack and Laura had mastered so well.

"Ok," Mel said. "Lead him out into the school and mount up. I'll be there in a minute." Yassen did as he was told and then nudged Russet into a walk, trying to find a comfortable position. Mel came out with a riding crop in her hand.

"What's that for?" Yassen asked nervously.

"It's to correct the horse. Don't worry so much." She grinned impishly, suddenly looking much younger. "Well, at least you can walk and your seat's pretty good. But you're holding the reins wrong." She corrected his grip and then showed him how to trot and canter.

By the end of the session, Yassen's legs were burning and his clothes were drenched in sweat. Mel had yelled herself hoarse and Russet's sleek coat was dark with sweat.

"Ok. Well done, bring him over here." Yassen sank down into the saddle and rode slowly over to Mel. "Give him a rub down and then get back to Sennen. Jack will go ballistic if you miss whatever he's got planned for you this afternoon." Yassen groaned as he slid out of the saddle.

"I hope he has a nice long sleep planned, because that's all I want to do now." Mel laughed and went to fetch a bucket of water. Yassen led Russet into his stall and untacked him. When he came back from the tack room, Mel was working on Russet.

"Go on back to Sennen. I'll take care of him." Mel smiled at him and waved him away. "Don't tell Jack!" she called after him.

He walked slowly back to Sennen, trying to ease some life back into his aching legs. Jack was waiting outside the hotel and called him over.

"Yassen, we have a visitor." a man moved out of the shadows and nodded to him. "This is John Rider; he's a trainer from Malagosto."

_Heya, please cud u review cuz it's depressing when u have more chapters than reviews!_


	5. Training

**Disclaimer:** I'm sure you know it by heart by now! And big ta to all my reviewers

Yassen held out his hand and was surprised at how strong Rider's handshake was. Yassen looked up at the man, though tall himself, he felt dwarfed by this man; he was easily six foot six and his shoulders were broad and powerful.

And his eyes, Yassen couldn't meet Rider's gaze. His eyes were dark brown, almost black and totally serious. Yassen felt a huge respect and fear of the man well up inside him.

"You're the Russian kid?" Rider spoke with an English accent, surprising Yassen, his size had made him expect an American. "Nice to meet you. Spider said that you could be one of the best and he hasn't yet been wrong." Yassen smiled uneasily.

"Thank you, but I'm not sure I'm that good. But I'll try to be the best." Rider nodded thoughtfully and turned to Jack, talking in an undertone. Yassen recognised the dismissal and made his way into the hotel, still preoccupied by the new arrival.

The rest of the day passed in a blur of sweat and aching muscles as Jack put him through more training, while Rider watched intently. When the evening came, Yassen was exhausted, but filled with a sense of elation at completing his first full day of training. He retired to his room to have a shower but was interrupted by a loud knocking on his door.

"Yes?" he asked, opening the door a crack. "Sir," He added as he realised who it was.

John Rider smiled. "May I come in?" he asked. Yassen bit his lip.

"Could I possibly have one minute?" he asked, looking around his room and trying to reach his discarded underpants without leaving the door.

"Yes. And I'd shut the door if I were you." Rider smiled knowingly. Yassen grinned back nervously and the door clicked shut.

Two minutes later he pulled the door open again, fully dressed. "Sorry about that. I was going to shower before I went out again." Rider nodded and sat down on the bed.

"Don't worry about it. Now, I'm here to take your friend Holly to Malagosto. Only, obviously, she won't be able to come back for a while because she'll lose muscle condition from not training." He paused, expecting a response. Yassen was silent so he continued. "So I'm going to wait and take both of you at the same time. Is that ok?"

"Yeah! That's fantastic!" Yassen's eyes lit up and he could hardly keep still. Rider held up a hand and he spun around, his face alert and expectant.

"There's a condition." Yassen stiffened. He was suddenly tense, keyed for action. "I'll be the one training you from now on." Rider smiled as Yassen let out a yell of delight but kept his tone serious. "I don't know why you're so happy. You have it easy with Jack and Laura but I'm going to use Malagosto training, don't think this is going to be easy. It isn't going to be even remotely easy."

Rider stood up and walked to the door. Yassen opened it for him and he stepped out into the hallway.

"What time do you want me tomorrow morning, sir?" Yassen asked suddenly as Rider vanished around the corner.

"I won't want you until 7, but you should do your morning run and eat first. And call me Hunter."

Yassen nodded, even though Hunter couldn't see him, and shut the door again. He stripped and showered before leaving to buy some food. He walked past Laura's room and then stopped. He could hear voices and a moment's eavesdropping revealed the as speakers were Laura and Holly. They seemed to be getting on quite well after their argument earlier and Yassen made a split second decision. He turned back and knocked on the door.

"Hi, Laura, is Holly allowed out? Just for a walk." Laura nodded and ducked her head round the door to talk to Holly. Yassen stepped back from the doorway as Holly appeared. She was smiling.

"Hi, did you ask me out on a walk?" He nodded and smiled self-consciously. "Well, how can I refuse? Let me get my coat." She vanished behind the door again, and Laura stepped forward quickly.

"Both of you better be back by nine. Especially you, Yassen, Rider is tough, you'll be working hard from now on so make the most of this evening. And get some sleep." By the time she finished talking, the two teens were in the lounge.

Holly was wearing a thickly padded riding jacket, and was hugging it around her like a duvet. Yassen on the other hand, was wearing a light sweater and jeans and was perfectly comfortable. But then, it was colder than this in Russia.

They walked in silence, neither one wanted to break the stillness of the night. Holly was still in pain; her breath came in short gasps when the cuffs of her jacket brushed the gashes on her wrists and her eyes watered constantly.

"What's wrong?" Yassen asked finally as they reached the concrete bunker on the hillside, "Why are you crying?" Holly didn't answer. Yassen opened his mouth to press for one but changed his mind. Let her talk when she wanted to.

"I'm scared," She whispered after a long hush. "Just… scared." Yassen moved a little closer and tentatively placed an arm over her shoulders.

"You'll be ok, you will. You're stronger than you think." God he felt stupid. He didn't have a clue how to calm her.

"It's not me. Or, it is, but not like you think. I mucked it up for SCORPIA and they don't forgive mistakes. They'd kill, rather than forgive." She tried to say more but a sob rose in her throat and she broke down, pressing her face blindly against Yassen's chest, searching for comfort.

Yassen was shocked; he had expected a nice quiet walk with his friend… acquaintance? No, friend. And it had turned into another way for him to make Holly cry. He had to admit, he seemed to have the knack. It wasn't a skill he wanted.

His experiences of comforting people were extremely limited, as the youngest child, he had always been the one being comforted. But it was so long ago, so distant. That was part of another life, one he would never have again. So he wrapped his arms around her shoulders and let her cry.

Ten later Yassen stood up, pulling Holly with him; he released his hold on her shoulders and grabbed her arms.

"Holly! For God's sake, calm down! You're better than this, now calm the hell down!" and she did, instantly. Her violent sobs subsided to small hiccups in a matter of seconds and she brushed the tears from her face.

Yassen smiled down at her. "That's better. Come on, we're going back and you will be fine. You're not leaving for Malagosto until I finish my training. They might not forgive, but I'll bet they forget. And Rider seems fair; he's doing all of my training from now on. Wish me luck, he's meant to be really tough." Holly smiled weakly and followed him down the path, noting how gracefully he moved, like spilt oil.

They got back a little before nine and Yassen waited outside the pub toilets while Holly tried to clean herself up. They walked back up to her room in companionable silence. She thanked him for the walk and vanished through the door with a small smile. Yassen grinned back, even though she couldn't see him, and went into his room.

He flung himself onto his bed and was asleep in seconds, dreaming of Russia and his dead family.

The next morning was cold and clear, frost had formed on the sand which crunched as his feet thudded down on it. He had taken the torch from the desk again but was surprised to find that he didn't need it, the sky was brightening already. He followed the same path he had taken the day before, pausing at the top of the hill to watch the sunrise. He jogged down the steps in the pale sunlight and sprinted across the car park when he realised that he was late for his training with Rider.

"Sorry I'm late si… Hunter." Rider looked at him coldly, all traces of his friendliness had vanished and he looked like the man he truly was, a ruthless assassin. Yassen felt his awe of the man rise another notch. He stood as straight as he could and looked straight ahead.

"Don't do it again. You also seem to have missed breakfast so you'll be working on an empty stomach until midday." Hunter spun on his heel and set off across the car park. Yassen hesitated and then followed, anticipation building in his chest as Hunter marched over the sandy path. They reached a barbed wire fence and Hunter leapt over in and waited while Yassen stumbled over it, tearing his combat trousers on the sharp metal.

They set off again and then Hunter stopped, looking all around, he led the way into a hollow between sand dunes. It was strung with nets and ropes. Metal and wooden posts rose out of the ground and a huge wooden wall blocked the rest of the area from view.

"It's an assault course. Start here, go around there, over there, under the net…"the instructions continued and Yassen followed the course with his eyes, already trying to work out the best way to get through it, "and finally, up over the wall and back to here. Got it? Good, five times round, go."

Yassen leapt forward, scrambling under nets, along ropes and planks and then up the wall. He hated that wall, after just one circuit he had developed a burning desire to knock it down. He didn't try and pounded round and round, Hunter gave him an extra five laps each time he finished the previous set. His legs burned. He could scarcely feel the ground under his numb, freezing feet, but he refused to give up. He refused to give Hunter the satisfaction.

Yassen lost count of the number of times he was forced round the course. It felt like fifty, but was probably more. On his last lap, he reached the foot of the wall and stopped. He stared up at the daunting shape, the sheer, closely fitted boards offering no hand or foot-holds. And he gave up. His whole body ached and pain filled his mind with defeat.

"I can't do it sir," He said quietly. "I can't." Hunter came around the side of the wall and leapt. His fingers curled over the top and he heaved himself up.

"You can. And you will, come on, jump." Hunter leant down, placing a hand on Yassen's shoulder. "Come on kid; one more time."

Yassen turned and looked up at the older man, then backed away a little and jumped. He felt his hands grab the top of the wall and pulled his protesting body over the top.

"Thank you," He murmured as he stumbled back to the start. Hunter nodded silently and marched away. Yassen followed obediently, dreading the afternoon.

Lunch consisted of fruit and salad, chicken and, bizarrely, four bars of chocolate. "For energy," had been Hunter's response. Yassen had quickly learned not to ask too many questions.

That afternoon, Hunter drove Yassen to a deserted stretch of moor land with his pistol. Hunter handed him a silencer and proceeded to teach him the basics of firing and cleaning his weapon. They set up a few targets and Yassen watched, stunned, as his aim improved steadily.

"You're a natural," Hunter informed him, handing him the pile of targets. "We should go soon, but do you want to try one more?" Yassen nodded eagerly and reloaded as quickly as he could. This was something he could do. This was easy! Hunter returned and knelt beside him. "Ok, I'm not expecting you to do this, and I haven't asked anyone else to do this on their first try, but try to get them in an inch spread. Take your time."

Yassen nodded and aimed carefully, curling his finger around the trigger. He squeezed off the ten shots and watched as Hunter went to retrieve the target.

"You did it. Like I said, you're a natural." Yassen smiled at the compliment but didn't look up from cleaning the pistol.

The drive back to Sennen seemed much shorter than before; Hunter was impressed by Yassen's skill. He had also noticed his easy grace and his air of confidence. He could tell the boy was going to be one of the best. And that scared him.


	6. Friends

Heya, sorry for the long gap between now and my last update, my internet has been offline! But I'm back and I hope you like this chapter!

Yassen woke up next morning with stiff joints and an aching back, and a huge feeling of satisfaction. He rolled out of bed and ran his usual path along the beach and up the hill. He found that if he stood on tiptoe, he could see the top of the wall and one of the gleaming metal posts.

He made it back to the hotel in good time for breakfast and crunched his way through four slices of toast before racing out to meet Hunter. He was standing in the car park, facing the sea, and he seemed lost in thought. Yassen crept up and stood beside him, waiting patiently until Hunter noticed him.

"How long have you been there?" he asked as he turned and almost stood on Yassen's foot.

"A few minutes, sir," He said, falling into step behind Hunter as he set off over the car park. Damn! He had to do that bloody assault course again.

They jumped over the fence, Yassen managing to avoid ripping another pair of jeans, and weaved between clumps of spiky marram grass to the course. Hunter gestured and Yassen set off, spraying sand as he crawled under the nets. He reached the wall and leapt, hooking his outstretched fingers over the top and hauling himself up, minimum effort. He grinned and dropped to the ground again.

He pounded round for as long as he could, which was considerably longer than he had the day before. Finally he stumbled up to where Hunter was lying on the sand and sank to the ground, gasping for breath. His legs were burning again, but he noticed the difference from yesterday. Still, it was only because he'd eaten. Hunter looked at him and stood up.

"Come on. That was better then before, you know why?" Yassen nodded and spat on the sand.

"It's because I got in early enough to eat." He said, feeling the cold air rasping at his throat as he sucked it in. Hunter stood over him, watching as Yassen brought his breathing under control.

Finally he straightened up and looked Hunter in the eye.

"Ok. I'm fine now." The older man turned and walked away, Yassen followed on autopilot, his legs responded before his brain had a chance to interfere. Hunter led him over the fence and back to the beach.

"Right then," he said, turning. "Meet me here in an hour. Go back and eat. Remember the chocolate!" He called after Yassen's retreating back.

He ran over the hard wet sand at the water's edge and then pounded up the slipway, turning his ankle on a rock once. The pain subsided quickly and he didn't stop, but he watched the ground more carefully after that.

He ate quickly, more salad, and then went up to see Holly. He found her in the lounge, sitting on the windowsill again. He was going to call out but decided to see how quiet he could be. He moved forwards carefully, his feet pressing on the carpet. His breathing was silent and he took a long time, but Holly didn't realise he was there.

"Hi!" he said brightly, dropping down beside her. She leapt off the sill, her hand slicing through the air. Yassen threw himself backwards, his spine creaking as he twisted away from her hand.

"Oh God! Sorry!" Holly squealed as Yassen thudded onto the floor. "Are you alright?" Yassen propped himself up onto his elbows and laughed.

"Yeah, I'm fine; it was my own fault anyway." He hauled himself up and brushed himself off. "That was an impressive reaction by the way."

"You too, I didn't realise people could bend that way."

"Trust me, they can't," he said, massaging his now aching back. Holly cringed and apologised again. "Look, I'm fine! Well, fine-ish." He laughed and Holy grinned, though a little guiltily.

"So what have you been doing? You're covered in sand, well, you were until you hit the floor." Yassen glanced down and hastily spread the sand around with his foot.

"I've been doing an assault course with Hunter. It's hard work and, yes, I get covered in sand. I don't know what I'm doing this afternoon, I went shooting yesterday but I don't think I'm doing it today."

"You're really lucky; he's one of the best in the world. He was a marine, I think, then SCORPIA recruited him and he never looked back." Holly's voice dripped envy and awe. Yassen laughed,

"So it's nothing to do with the fact that he's over six foot, muscular and, I would imagine, totally gorgeous in your eyes?" Holly blushed and looked determinedly everywhere except Yassen.

"Of course not, what do you take me for?" She asked, sounding affronted, "No, don't answer that!" she yelled as Yassen opened his mouth with a cheeky glint in his eyes. He sniggered and danced out of reach as she hurled a cushion at him.

"Now now, calm down, you're not meant to try and kill people with cushions! And I have to go back now." He added as he dodged cushions on the way to the door. He caught the last one and tossed it back at her before racing down the steps and out the door.

He flew along the beach and skidded to a stop, spraying Hunter with sand.

"Sorry sir." He panted. Hunter smiled at him,

"No problem. Now follow me please." Yassen obeyed, wondering why Hunter was suddenly acting so friendly.

He found out soon enough, there was a large canvas sheet laid out on the sand just around the headland at the far end of the beach. They had to wade through the water to reach it. Yassen eyed the round sheet nervously but followed Hunter to its edge.

"Ok then, you need to have a basic knowledge of martial arts so I'm going to have to train you up. And," he held up a hand as Yassen opened his mouth," I know that you can fight, but it's street fighting, you'd be killed before you could blink if you came up against someone trained. Sorry to burst your bubble."

Yassen shrugged and copied Hunter, slipping off his shoes and stepping onto the canvas. The sand underneath was soft and the sheet moulded to the shape of the ridges. Hunter stood in the centre of the sheet, poised and tense. Yassen walked over to him and stood silent while Hunter adjusted his stance, making sure that his centre of gravity was low.

Hunter showed Yassen some basic moves and then they had short fight. Yassen was knocked to the ground more times than he cared to count.

By the end of the afternoon Yassen had amassed a huge number of bruises and his whole body ached. The tide had come in while they had been fighting and the two men had to walk over the cliffs and sand dunes to get back to the hotel.

Hunter formed in into another training method and yelled Yassen up the rocks and along the paths. Hunter had gathered up the huge canvas sheet and carried it over his shoulder as if it weighed no more than a feather.

They quickly fell into a pattern; they would do the assault course ever day, but they would do shooting one afternoon and fighting the next.

When Holly joined them, Yassen found himself working harder and harder to keep ahead of her. Outside the training however, they were getting closer and closer. Yassen found himself with something he had never had before: a best friend.


	7. Complications

**Hi, just so you know, i think that all my reviewers are STARS! and all you people who read and don't click a certain purple button... *evil glare* please review, it keeps me going through school!**

**1 month later**

Yassen ran, revelling in the feeling of the wind against his face and arms. Holly raced alongside him, her breath even and calm. His was still ragged, though not as bad as it had been. His legs and arms were now well muscled from the training, and he had extended his morning run so that he could continue to improve.

Holly had been training again for about two weeks, Yassen had overtaken her during her…absence and could beat her at everything except the assault course where she came into her own and raced around at an unbelievable speed. Today was a Sunday and they had the day free. They stopped at the bunker again; Yassen pulled himself up the front while Holly walked along the back wall.

"What do you want to do then?" she asked, dropping to the concrete and looking up at Yassen.

"I don't know, any ideas?" he already knew her answer; it was the same every Sunday.

"Well, we could go riding if you like." Yassen laughed and sat down beside her. He always said no to this question and they had gone swimming and kayaking for the last two weeks.

"I don't know. Your choice I guess." He paused, "But I suppose riding wouldn't be too bad." Holly rolled her eyes and pushed him off the edge. He hit the ground and rolled, springing to his feet and bowing.

"Yeah yeah, you're such a show off, Yassen Gregorovich. Riding it is, then?" She slid down the front and landed cat-like on her feet. Yassen nodded and held out an arm. She slipped hers through it and they set off, taking the cliff path towards Land's End.

"That's odd," Yassen said as they entered the stable.

"What is? What's odd?" Holly asked, looking all around.

"Hunter's here, look," And sure enough, he was, talking earnestly to Mel as she groomed one of the horses. "I wonder why." Hunter stopped talking as they approached and smiled at them.

"Hey you two, what've you been doing? I was just having a chat with Mel about the training that all the others did here." Yassen shrugged, hiding his puzzlement, after all, they hadn't asked.

"We just fancied a ride. If it's ok with Mel, of course." Hunter nodded and then leant over and muttered something in Mel's ear. She shook her head and Hunter waved goodbye and left. "What was that about?" Yassen murmured to Holly.

"Come on then you two, Russet and Saffy have missed you." Holly shifted her feet guiltily and Mel laughed. "I was only joking! You know where the tack is; take them for as long as you want, I won't need them this afternoon." She turned back to the horse she was grooming.

Yassen and Holly tacked up the horses and trotted them down the path. Saffy, the horse that Holly had been given to ride, was a beautiful steel grey mare. Her full name was Saphira, but no one called her that.

"Where do you want to go? Sennen, or somewhere else? Or just a random ride?"

"Random ride would be good, no rules or anything," Yassen said after a moment's thought. Holly agreed and they turned away from the road and trotted over the open moor land.

Yassen pushed Russet forwards so they caught up with Holly and Saffy.

"What do you think that was about?"

"What do I think what was about?"

"All that, I mean, why was Hunter there? I've never seen him anywhere near there before." Yassen couldn't keep his curiosity under control. Holly, on the other hand, seemed indifferent.

"Does it matter? He probably does want to check on the training here. You're way too suspicious. Come on, let's canter." After that, they couldn't talk, but Yassen's mind was working overtime. He was certain that there was something going on but didn't know what.

They made it back to the stable at about five, just as it was starting to get dark. Neither of them had mentioned Hunter again but Holly had sensed that Yassen was still wondering about it.

"Bloody hell! You two took your time, where did you go?" Mel exclaimed, coming out to meet them. "Half way round Cornwall probably! Right then, let's get the horses in and then you can get back. Mr. Rider came back about an hour ago and said that when you got back he needed to talk to you both. Urgently."

Yassen rubbed Russet down quickly and ran out to meet Holly; she was waiting impatiently in the yard.

"God, you're so slow! Now then, running time." They raced back to the hotel; Yassen had to slow himself down to keep abreast of Holly. Hunter was pacing the lounge, his face worried.

"Where have you two been?" he snapped. "No, sorry, I didn't want to shout. I'm just a bit… well bloody terrified if you want the truth." He resumed his pacing, chewing his lip. Yassen shared a puzzled glance with Holly and stepped forward.

"Sir, what happened? Do you want us to get Jack?" Hunter gave him a tortured look before twisting back on his relentless pacing.

"MI6," He spat suddenly. "They took Laura and Jack." Behind Yassen, Holly gasped. He automatically grabbed her hand, pulling her closer and putting an arm around her.

"But… that's impossible, they were good, they would have fought back." Denial flooded his mind, they couldn't be gone.

"They did fight back. There are three MI6 agents in your room, one is tied up, and the others are dead." Hunter looked sick as he said it; Yassen could only suppose that he was worried about his colleagues.

"So, what do we do?" Holly asked, her voice steady. Hunter stopped and stared at her, his face incredulous.

"Do? We can't _do_ anything, it's way too dangerous for you two." Yassen bridled at that, he was proud of his skills. "Look, you're not properly trained, you couldn't kill, and you'd have to. Sorry, but we're waiting for reinforcements and when they arrive, you're both staying here." Holly opened her mouth to protest but Hunter silenced her with a glance.

"Is there anything we can do, sir?" Yassen asked quickly, eager to be part of it, even if only in a tiny way. Hunter looked at him thoughtfully, finally he nodded.

"Yes, go up and have a little chat with our prisoner, he should be conscious by now. Well, he _might_ be conscious by now," He added, smiling grimly. Holly was already at the door but Yassen hesitated.

"When are the reinforcements coming? And where from?" the older man looked surprised by the question but then shrugged.

"They're coming from London. But they have to drive down in trucks; they'll be here in about five, maybe six hours. Now, go in there and find out where the hell they've taken Jack and Laura." Yassen grinned and saluted. As he raced up the steps he could hear Hunter laughing. The sound was strained, but at least it was a laugh.


	8. Counter Attack

This chapter is for all my lovely reviewers! Thanx guys!

Holly was sitting on his bed, the living man tied up in front of her. She looked up as Yassen entered the room and smiled thinly. She jerked her head towards the tiny bathroom, the bodies were in there. Yassen walked over to the door and eased it open.

A man and woman, dressed in the same black body armour that their living comrade still wore, lay in a puddle of blood on the floor. Bullet wounds showed clearly on their faces and throats. Yassen slammed the door shut, fighting down the bile that rose in his throat. He walked back over to the bound man and squatted down beside him.

Hunter had twisted a rope around his head, gagging him. Yassen slid his knife from his pocket and flicked it open. The man stopped struggling and watched the blade, fear showing in his eyes.

The blade swept past the man's eye, cutting the rope and grazing his skin. He jerked away, too late if the slash had been intended to kill. Yassen pulled the rope from his mouth. The corners of his mouth were bloody and sore, but Yassen didn't feel any pity. He didn't think he could pity this man.

"Who are you?" Holly spoke from over his shoulder. Their prisoner squinted up at her, his eyes showing a flicker of hope.

"My name's Paul Daniels," He said carefully. He looked at Yassen, trying to find some compassion in his eyes. There was none, only a barely controlled rage mixed with worry and a deep sadness.

Holly leant over Yassen's shoulder, staring fiercely at Paul.

"Where have they taken Jack and Laura?" she hissed angrily. Paul shrank away under her stare, but refused to answer. "Tell me," She ordered, reaching out and grabbing his face. Her nails dug into his cheeks and he whimpered. Yassen felt a stab of revulsion; he could see that Daniels was barely trained.

"Ok," He whispered, "Ok, I'll tell you." Holly relaxed her grip and Yassen leant back so she could get closer to Paul. "There's a… bunker I suppose you'd call it, on the Goonhilly Downs.

"I think you do your shooting near to us, we hear the gunfire sometimes. It belongs to the Army, but we use it more than them." Yassen stood up and walked to the door.

"Where are you going?" Holy asked, glancing at him and standing up at same time.

"I'm going to tell Hunter, he needs to know where they are." Holly stepped over Paul's bound form and walked out into the corridor.

"I'll go. I don't trust myself not to kill him." Yassen stared after her, smiling slightly. When he got back into the room, Paul had managed to haul himself round so he was propped up against the bed.

"Were you telling the truth? Are they in that bunker?" Paul nodded and returned his gaze to the door.

A moment later, Hunter came in with Holly trailing behind.

"You won't believe this; the reinforcements have been arrested by MI6. I don't know how they found out, but we're not getting any help." He looked at Yassen and Holly, and paused. "Right. I really don't want to do this but you're coming to help rescue them."

Yassen gasped, staring disbelievingly at Hunter. "You're kidding! But I thought it was too dangerous…" his voice trailed off.

"Don't remind me," Hunter said, "I might change my mind. You're not shooting to kill, I've got a contact and I'll get tranquilisers, not bullets. No arguments." Yassen nodded and Hunter turned to Paul. "Ok then, what do we have here. Paul Daniels, right?" The man nodded slowly, clearly puzzled. "Oh come on, you don't really think we'd let MI6 run around and not know who was working for them?

"So, are they really in this place? Tell the truth by the way," He added, pulling his pistol and pointing it at their prisoner.

"Yes! They're in the bunker. I swear! No, don't shoot, it's the truth!" Paul shrieked as Hunter made a show of taking aim at his head. Hunter regarded him for a second and then lowered the gun.

"Yassen, Holly, take him up the hill, gag him and leave him somewhere, I don't care where. I'm going to see about these tranquilisers." Hunter turned and left the room.

Yassen glanced at Holly and bent down, grabbing Paul's feet firmly. Holly caught him under the arms and they half-dragged him down the stairs and through the lounge. Terry was standing in a doorway, watching incredulously as they hauled him across the car park. Yassen nodded at him, grinning broadly.

Luckily for them, it had gotten dark while they were talking, so their efforts went unnoticed. Yassen went in front; his night eyes were better than Holly's, so he had, by silent agreement been chosen to find a suitable place to put Paul. They eventually settled on a spot behind a large rock and gagged him again.

"Sorry about all this," Holly muttered as they left. Yassen rolled his eyes and took her hand to guide her back.

Ten minutes later and they were standing in front of Hunter, each carrying a tranquiliser rifle and wearing full body armour and black face paint, with night-vision goggles slung around their necks. Yassen couldn't help but think of the bodies in his room- their body armour hadn't helped them at all.

"Right then, ready?" Hunter didn't need to talk; they knew what they had to do. They piled into Hunter's car and set off, driving erratically to try and prevent them from being followed. If they had been, the car had twin heat-seeking missiles concealed behind the brake lights which would soon stop any pursuer.

An hour later they pulled up at the side of the road, the vague white shapes of the dishes at Goonhilly satellite earth station drifted in and out of focus.

Yassen and Holly waited silently while Hunter moved off into the heather. Yassen stamped his feet a little, trying to ease some life back into his toes; Holly punched him to warn him to be quiet. Hunter emerged from the darkness not ten feet away, right in front of them.

He beckoned and Holly rushed forward, her fear showing clearly, even through the darkness. Yassen moved more lightly, his lithe form almost invisible in the gloom.

"Where are they? For that matter, where are we?" He hissed as Hunter stepped towards them. He raised a finger to his lips and signalled for them to follow him quietly. Holly tried, but she stumbled constantly, treading on dry sticks and leaves which crackled under her feet. Yassen was almost running, but still his feet made scarcely a sound as they touched the frozen ground.

"They're about one hundred yards dead ahead. Spotlight," Hunter whispered suddenly, throwing himself flat as a disc of white light swung over the heather and gorse. Yassen twisted backwards, pulling Holly down with him as the light swept over their heads. Distant voices were suddenly audible and Yassen realised with a sick dread that they had been seen.

Hunter appeared, dragging himself along the path on his stomach. Yassen nudged Holly and they followed him, ducking under bushes and shrubs, trying to avoid the footsteps which seemed to be all around. Hunter led them through the sentry lines and they were soon at their shooting range.

"This is ridiculous." Holly whispered, "How can we have been so close and not know they were there?"

"I'm not sure that Hunter didn't know they were there. But it's a bit late now either way, I guess we just have to get through tonight with Laura and Jack in tow." Holly shrugged, forgetting that it was pitch black and that she could hardly see her own hand in front of her face.

"Yeah, I guess so. Where are we going now?"

"I don't know. This way, I guess." Yassen heard her suppress a laugh and grinned into the night.

"Quiet, you two. You'll get us killed." Hunter's whispered admonition drifted back to them and they fell silent. "Right then," he muttered a few minutes later, "the bunker is a couple of hundred yards that way." He pointed, his hand gleaming white in the pale moonlight. "Gloves on now, by the way.

"So, Yassen, you go say… fifty yards right, Holly, same on your left. I'll stay here, whistle when you get to the right place and then we'll move forwards, keep an eye out for spotlights, use your night vision goggles when you have to, but not all the time. Yassen, I don't think you'll need them anyway.

"Shoot anyone you see but don't let them see you, these things aren't instant. Good luck, both of you."


	9. Capture

**Disclaimer: I only own those characters that no one's heard of before! not much to boast about is it?**

Yassen set off, crawling flat on his belly, his feet pushing off of the thick heather. He estimated for 60 pulls before he was in position. About half way through he became aware of voices, quite far off, but he wasn't going to take chances. He finished the pulls and whistled softly, he heard a reply and moved forward again.

The voices were louder now. Coming from a little way to Yassen's left. Slipping the goggles over his eyes, he stood up slowly. He raised the rifle, cradling it in his shoulder. He moved forward slightly, sighting through the scope as he moved.

A moment later, there were two muffled gunshots and the men twisted and fell; bright feathers gleaming in the darkness. Yassen turned away from them and carried on towards the bunker.

It loomed ahead of him suddenly, emerging from the darkness a bit at a time. Yassen moved forwards, stealthy, but more confident now.

A sense of movement. A strangled cough. Yassen threw himself flat as the bullet smashed into the concrete. Twisting, he scrambled backwards deeper cover, dragging himself over shattered fragments of concrete. The pair of guards appeared and Yassen scrabbled for the rifle. It was trapped under his body. Snarling, he rolled, bringing the rifle up to his chest. He swung around and shot the two men. They pulled the darts out and came forward, raising their rifles.

"Too late, kid. You're dead." Yassen braced himself, his eyes squeezing shut. There were two gunshots, muffled by a silencer. Yassen flinched. He opened his eyes.

The two guards were slumped on the heather, blood glistening dully in the moonlight. Hunter stepped out of the shadows.

"Black against grey concrete, for God's sake. It's a good thing I heard voices. Now, silence and keep down low, I don't want you to be killed on your first mission." Yassen nodded and followed Hunter, both moving at kind of half crouch.

They reached a door in the side of the concrete cube. A single bullet ricocheted along the wall. Hunter ducked and fired, two more bullets were spat out into the night. Yassen was pushed into the corridor with Hunter close behind.

"Hah. Shoddy organisation. They weren't expecting us, so they didn't make any preparations. Come on." Hunter slid past him and moved softly down the corridor. Yassen followed stealthily, alert and tense but virtually silent.

Behind them, four "corpses" stood up and went to report to their commander.

There was a branch off of their corridor, opposite a heavy steel door. Hunter spotted it and flattened himself against the whitewashed wall. Yassen copied him, making sure he stayed close to the older man.

Hunter span around the corner, bringing the gun up. No one opened fire and he started along the corridor. He stopped and peered around the next corner. Yassen waited.

"Ok, there's a flight of stairs at the end. I'll sweep down there; you stay up here and have a look round. See if you can find Holly, I haven't heard anything from her for a while."

"Yes, sir, good luck, sir," Yassen whispered. He moved across the corridor to the door. He tried the handle and was surprised when it turned under his hand. He found himself in a sparsely furnished cell. A steel bed stood under the barred window and a toilet and sink were concealed behind a clouded glass partition. There was clearly no one inside so he moved on.

Two more cells were just down the corridor, one opening into another. The second cell was locked. Yassen searched for the keys, but of course they wouldn't have left them in the cell. They would be with one of the guards, hopefully one of the guards inside the building.

He stepped back into the corridor. A cool breeze blew in from the open door that he and Hunter had entered by. The main door was to his right and he quickly locked it. The silence was oppressive; Hunter wasn't making any sound from the basement.

Yassen walked back to the turning but something drew his gaze. A door handle, apparently sticking out of a bare wall. He looked closer and saw faint joins, a white door in a white wall in a white building. It was practically invisible.

He groaned and pressed his ear against the door. Muffled voices were audible through the wood. Yassen strained his ears to hear the words but the men weren't standing close enough to the door. He pulled back.

"I'd stay very still if I was you." The voice was accompanied by a sharp prod in the back of his neck with something hard and metallic. Yassen stiffened. He recognised the touch of a gun. Enough people had had him like this in Moscow. "Turn around, slowly. Try anything and I shoot."

Yassen did as he was told, internally rolling his eyes at the clichéd talk. The man in front of him was in his mid-twenties, stocky and powerful looking. He had a sergeant's stripes on his camouflage uniform. He was also alone. Yassen's brow wrinkled, the other guards he'd seen had been in pairs.

"Drop the rifle, now." The last word was accompanied by another jab with the gun. Yassen did so, hoping that it would go off like it did in films. It didn't and the guard kicked it away.

He moved closer, catching hold of Yassen's arm before he could twist away. Yassen lashed out as the gun swayed away from him.

His elbow drove into the man's stomach, knocking him to the ground. Yassen swept up his rifle and leapt over the gasping man. He fled to the door and dived out into the night.

He pulled up short instantly. Three men, holding Holly between them, stood in front of him. They raised their guns slowly.

Yassen swore and dropped his rifle again (it still didn't go off). Holly smiled weakly at him and he returned it wondering what would happen next.

The men knocked on the door and the voices stopped. There were muffled footsteps and the door opened a crack.

"Yes, what do you wa…? Oh." The man's eyes widened and he pulled the door open further. Yassen looked him over, taking in the grey, dull suit and the dark shoes. The man seemed to have been chosen to match, his skin, eyes, lips and hair were all grey. Yassen found himself looking at a young…er Alan Blunt.

"We've found some intruders, sir," barked the soldier holding Yassen. Blunt nodded and shut the door. "Uh…" the guard faltered.

Yassen strained his ears. Urgent voices sounded behind the door and then there were sharp, military footsteps and it swung open again. This man was taller than Blunt, dressed in military uniform covered with braid and medals. His steel grey hair was cropped short.

"What do we have here then? Intruders? Hardly, they're a couple of kids." The third guard stepped forward.

"We found these on them, sir. Hypodermic dart rifles, they shot six of our men between them. And this one," he pointed at Yassen, "knocked out Sergeant Jackson."

Yassen raised his chin defiantly as he was shoved forwards for inspection.

"Really? Well we can't have that then, can we? Lock them up, put them in cell two and open the door in between cells one and two." The man turned away and the door slammed shut again.

Holly and Yassen were yanked forward and taken into the second cell that Yassen had looked into earlier, the one with the adjoining door.

They were forced down onto the bunk and made to stay there while the third guard unlocked the metal door to the next cell. Jack stood in the doorway, blood caked on one side of his face, supporting himself on the doorframe.

Holly gasped and leapt up, but was shoved back down. The guards retreated, keeping the three of them covered with their guns until the door clanged shut. Instantly, Holly was on her feet and halfway across the room.

Yassen followed, feeling uncomfortable as he always did when Holly and Jack were together. Laura was lying unconscious on the bunk, her grey face far worse than Jack's blood soaked one. Yassen moved closer to Jack and Holly, listening closely.

"She won't wake up. We've been here for ages but she just stays the same, I don't know what to do." Jack's voice broke on the last few words and Yassen saw hot, salty tears spill down his cheeks. Holly hugged him and then went over to Laura.

"Yassen, come here a second." Yassen did as he was told, dropping to his knees beside Holly and leaning forward. "What do you see there?"

Yassen glanced sideways at her and then focused on the point just above her finger.

"It's like an injection… a hypodermic dart maybe?" Holly nodded triumphantly.

"That's what I thought. Those darts Hunter gave us, how long did they last for?"

"I don't know. A few hours maybe, you think it's the same drug?"

"I'm assuming that Hunter would get the best, and that MI6 would also use the best. I think they gave her too much, she's in a coma." Yassen gulped, biting his lip.

"What can we do? Well, can we do anything?" He asked, thinking that Jack would probably kill himself if Laura died. Holly shook her head.

"I don't think there's anything we can do, except wait; and pray."

"Shit. Don't let Jack hear you say that." Holly shook her head hopelessly and Yassen put an arm around her shoulders. She shrugged it off and went to sit next to Jack, against the wall, facing Laura.

Yassen sighed and stalked into the cell next door. While he and Holly had been talking, someone had shoved a plate of bread and a flask of water through the door. He took a hunk of bread and gulped down some water, tasting the metallic flavour of the flask.

He walked back into the room next door and handed the flask and bread to Holly. She didn't thank him but ran over to Laura with it. Yassen turned away and sat on his bunk.

Losing himself in thought, he bent forward, his elbows resting on his knees and closed his eyes. He appeared to be sleeping.

_Where's Hunter? Has he been caught? But then wouldn't they have brought him here? __**Not if he works with them**__**…**__ he can't be though… __**how did he know Daniels' name, then?**__ Well, SCORPIA would monitor MI6. How else would they know what's going on__**? **__**But to know every agent's name, that's pushing it a bit yeah?**__I don't like the way you think. How can we get out of here if Hunter can't help? __**Look around, there has to be something…**__Vents…_

Hi, i hate to tell you all this but I've caught up with myself. (I've been a few chapters ahead of my published ones) so it might be a while before my next update.. sorry guys! and worst of all, i think only a few chapters left... I'll have to think of a new story now.


	10. Bittersweet

**I actually cried writing this chapter. meh, I'm sorry it's so short!**

**Disclaimer: do i have to write it all out again?**

Yassen's head snapped up, his eyes scanning the room. Sure enough, in one corner, there was a steel grating and beyond, a dark rectangular tube. Yassen pulled himself up, holding himself there with one hand and pounding on the grille with his fist. Holly raced back into the room.

"What the hell are you doing?" she stopped and looked up at him. "That's genius, pure, unadulterated genius!" She darted back to Laura, hauling her off of the bunk and into her arms. "Jack, we're going. Can you grab that sheet?"

Yassen succeeded in punching through the grille and dropped to the ground. He flexed his fingers, wincing as he saw the lines of blood well up in the creases.

He turned to Holly, "Can you jump up and pull it out? I would but, well…" he held up his hand which was now dripping scarlet droplets onto the concrete. She did so quickly, handing Laura's limp body to Jack. "Now, get up there, me and Jack will pass Laura up. Just keep going straight, you'll get out eventually. And you're dragging Laura, Jack's pushing. Here, I'll give you a leg up."

Holly was boosted into the vent and twisted like a gymnast to look out again. "Ok, I'm ready." She said. Yassen nodded and spread out the sheet on the floor. Jack quickly lifted Laura onto it and tied a few knots across her body to hold her in place.

They lifted her up and, with help from Holly, pushed her into the vent. Jack leapt up after her leaving Yassen alone. He was about to jump up, but stopped and snatched up the flask of water before hauling himself up, one-handed. The cuts on his fingers were stiff and sore and he didn't want to put any pressure on them.

The others were already some way ahead, visible only as a dwindling smudge of black on black. Yassen dragged himself forward and soon caught up.

They were moving in silence apart from the occasional clang as someone's foot hit the side of the vent. Yassen always hissed a "ssshhh" at the culprit and the noises became less frequent. Finally, they stopped.

"What is it?" Yassen whispered, leaning round Jack to talk to Holly.

"There's a grille thing here, I don't think that I can get Laura over it without us going through, and there are people underneath."

"Be quiet then. Right," he said, thinking quickly. "I'm going to go back to that branch we went past earlier and find out where it leads. Jack, can you and Holly move Laura back to there? Ok, we're going to get out of here." The Russian coiled up and scrambled back along the vent.

He felt a soft breeze against his left cheek and turned towards it, somewhere, light was creeping through, turning the vent into a maze of greys and blacks. There were solid walls of darkness round every turn, right next to patches of what was almost daylight. He heard a yelp from behind him and stopped, peering back over his shoulder.

Distant yelling echoed along the tunnels, mingled with the sound of hands and feet hitting the metal walls, and a yelp of pain and shock. Jack appeared, dragging Laura on her sheet.

"Where's Holly?" Yassen asked in an undertone. Jack briefly considered telling him to keep moving but stopped. He hadn't had much to do with the boy since Hunter had arrived and he had changed. He was no longer the shy, quiet boy he had been a month ago, he was hard and strong. For the first time on a long while, Jack actually felt afraid.

"I'm here" Holly muttered from the back of the group. "Keep moving Yassen, they're trying to find us already." Yassen smiled at the sound of her voice; he'd realised that it had been her who yelped and had worried that she'd been recaptured.

They hurried forward, freezing every now and then as voices passed underneath them. After what seemed like an age, Yassen turned a corner and saw a patch of starlit sky.

"We're out, that's the end," He rasped. He relaxed slightly, feeling his eyelids droop. A nice warm bed, that's what he needed. "Wait," he said suddenly, his body tensing instinctively.

A hail of bullets slammed through the thin metal. It sounded like thunder. Yassen threw himself flat, with his arms over his head. A low murmur of voices echoed along the vent.

Something brushed against his leg and he looked back. Holly was squeezing past him, flat against the metal panels.

"What are you doing?" he hissed. She held a finger to her lips and levered herself forward. Yassen tried to speak again but she kicked him sharply in the ribs. His face contorted but he refused to make a sound.

In front of him, Holly was lying with her head inclined towards the men outside, listening intently. Her lips moved as she tried to work out what was going on.

Another voice joined in, speaking harshly. There was a brief scuffle and five gunshots. Each one sounded a death toll. Holly flinched back as the owner of the other voice came towards the vent.

"Yassen, get out of there. Do you have Jack and Laura?"

"Hunter!" Holly squealed, leaping forward off Yassen's head. He groaned in pain and followed. Sure enough, Hunter stood there, his eye gleaming in the blackness of his face. He grinned as Holly flung her arms around him.

Jack dropped to the ground and, with Yassen and Hunter's help, lowered Laura out of the tunnel. Hunter was at her side in a second while Holly explained briefly what had happened and what she though was wrong with her.

Hunter lifted her limp body, dropping the white sheet to the floor.

"We're going, follow me." They did as they were told, not wanting to argue. Yassen tailed at the back of the group, listening carefully in case they were being followed. Apart from Holly and Hunter talking quietly, he couldn't hear anything, all was quiet.

They followed Hunter; Holly had somehow drifted back from being at his side to walk next to Yassen.

"I'm not going to Malagosto," She said suddenly. Yassen started at the sound of her voice, and then stared as what she had said sank in.

"What? Why not? You were great tonight." Holly shook her head sadly.

"I wasn't. I can't do this sort of thing, Yassen. It's not me, but you, you're amazing. You didn't get scared, you just planned. Hunter said that you'll be a fantastic assassin. But you'll be going to Malagosto alone." Yassen groped for her hand to try and get her to see sense. She snatched it away.

"Holly, you have to come. I don't know what I'd do without you. You're my best friend."

"Yassen, don't. Please, just…don't." her voice was thick and Yassen realised that she was crying. He felt tears prickle his own eyes and rubbed them away angrily. He opened his mouth to speak but Holly ran on ahead to walk with Jack.

Yassen allowed the tears to spill down his cheeks. He knew that Holly wouldn't change her mind.

When they reached the car, Holly sat in the front with Hunter. Yassen didn't speak to her; he wouldn't have known what to say. Their silence affected everyone and they made the hour long drive in total silence.

When they got back, the sky was paling over the horizon. Yassen helped Jack to get the now conscious Laura out of the car. He looked Holly in the eye, hoping that she could see the pain. Then he ran.

He raced over the silent road and down the slipway. The cold January air whipped at his face, giving his eyes an excuse to start watering. He could barely see but he knew where he was going. Along the beach and up alongside the tiny river which sculpted such perfect valleys and islands from the wet sand. Then up over the tiny patch of moor land, between a couple of houses and on up to the bunker.

He had sprinted most of the way and was gasping and choking by the time he reached it. He pulled himself up to the top and knelt there, feeling the sun rise and start to warm his back. The sky was clear and it promised to be a beautiful day.

Yassen felt that somehow this was unfair. The way he was feeling, it would be better if it was raining. Why did she have to decide not to come with him and Hunter? Didn't she know how much it would hurt him? He had explained all about his dead family over the past few weeks. He had been sure that she'd understood.

Yassen finally turned back to the hotel, he needed to sleep. The Russian crept through a silent building and into the lounge. Holly was waiting on the windowsill.

"Yassen, wait. I need to talk to you…" he ignored her and climbed up the stairs to his room. His bed lay waiting and he fell gratefully into it, kicking his trainers off.


	11. The Parting

**I know this is number two today but oh well... I'm sorry if the ending of this is a bit cliché, but I just thought that it had to happen! And I only own the OC's!**

It was dark when he awoke. There was a silvery-blue tint to the sky over the ocean that provided a little light. Yassen lay still, listening as a few tourists walked past the window.

His entire body hurt, it was like restarting the training, only now, his heart hurt too. He stood up slowly, feeling bones and muscles take the strain and groaning as joints clicked and straightened.

The bar downstairs was packed with locals and tourists. Hunter sat at a table on his own, picking at a plate of roast beef. Yassen went over and joined him.

"Hi, sir," he said dully. Hunter looked up and his eyes widened; Yassen looked awful, his eyes were dull and uninterested, he looked like he was being slowly tortured to death.

"Yassen, shit. You look terrible, look; it's on me, just… eat something!" Hunter ordered another roast and a glass of orange juice. Yassen didn't really move; he breathed and blinked, but he could have been in a coma. Nothing registered.

"Talk to her. Don't let your friendship go without a fight," Hunter said as Yassen started on his food. He looked away from Hunter.

"What's the point? She won't change her mind and I'm going to lose her anyway." Hunter's heart went out to the boy, he sounded so dejected and hopeless.

"No, probably she won't change her mind, but she's your best friend, she doesn't want to hurt you. You have to think about what's best for her. She isn't cut out to be an assassin, you are." Hunter's face flickered for a second but Yassen didn't notice.

He bent over his food and concentrated on eating. Hunter watched silently. As soon as Yassen finished, Hunter stood up and caught his arm.

"Come with me." It was an order and Yassen found himself following on autopilot. Holly was lying coiled in an armchair. Yassen pulled back when he realised what he was meant to be doing here but Hunter gripped harder, his fingers raising bruises on Yassen's arm. "Talk to her," he repeated.

Yassen wrenched his arm free and tried to run to the stairs. Hunter tripped him up without looking round and then yanked him to his feet. He pushed Yassen towards Holly who had opened her eyes, and was watching with interest.

Yassen glared at Hunter as he was forced into a chair next to Holly.

"If he runs, call me," He told Holly as he went out of the room. She nodded and turned to Yassen.

"I'm sorry. I know that this hurts but I can't help who I am." Yassen turned away, hearing the truth in her words but refusing to believe her. She caught his shoulders and turned him to face her. "I really am sorry; but can't you be happy for me? I thought you were my friend-" Yassen snapped his head up to look her in the eye.

"I thought you were my friend," He mimicked. "Yeah, me too. But friends don't just abandon other friends do they? So I guess that you're not such a great friend after all." Holly sat back, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Yassen…" She whispered weakly. He looked away from her. "I didn't want to hurt you; you've been hurt too much already. I hate having to do it, but better now than when I get to Malagosto.

"SCORPIA won't miss me if I go now, if I get in there and learn all the names and all that; they won't want me to go. At least, not alive." It was a chilling reminder of the mercilessness of his future employers and although he wanted to disagree, Yassen couldn't. He didn't want to use lies to argue for her to stay.

"I'll miss you," He murmured. Holly smiled and hugged him.

"I'll miss you too. Maybe you could come to visit me at some point?" the words sounded fake, and Yassen knew that he wouldn't see her again once he left. But he nodded and hugged her back.

"I'd like that."

"And, I could come and see you maybe? Once you're trained." He nodded again. Hot tears welled up and flowed down his cheeks, soaking into Holly's jumper. He felt a wet patch on his shoulder and knew that Holly was crying too.

"Look," he whispered. "I don't want our last conversation to consist of empty promises. I think we both know that we probably won't meet again." Holly nodded into his shoulder and dissolved into fresh sobs.

"Yassen?" she gasped suddenly, drawing back.

"Hmm…? What?" he looked at her, puzzled.

"I…have to tell you something." She took a deep breath and stood up, "I think… I think… I…love you." She turned and ran.

Hunter appeared from nowhere, think that it was Yassen. He dropped his arms and let Holly race past. Yassen was kneeling where he was, stunned.

"Looks like it was one hell of a talk," Hunter commented dryly. Yassen looked up at him blearily. "What did she say? You look worse than you did downstairs." Yassen laughed harshly.

"Right, so you weren't listening to every word we said?" he asked sarcastically. Hunter pretended to be insulted but his face fell when he saw Yassen's expression.

"She told you then? I didn't listen to the last bit," He explained.

"You _knew_? You knew and you didn't tell me?" Hunter held up his hands as Yassen advanced, carried to his feet in a blaze of fury.

"It was obvious. Everyone could tell, even Mel and she only saw you with Holly once. I guess people don't see what's under their noses. That's got to change by the way, if you want to succeed as an assassin." Yassen nodded sullenly. "Yassen, pull yourself together. She leaves for Keswick tomorrow morning, she's going home. Don't you dare sleep late, now go to bed." Yassen's legs walked him up the stairs to his room.

He didn't sleep, couldn't sleep. He lay awake for the whole night, tossing and turning, trying to find some speck of understanding. He cried at times, and he laughed out loud as he ran through his memories.

Yassen drifted into a kind of waking dream. Troubled images chased through his mind and filled him with worry and fear.

Dawn. Yassen heard the birds calling from the trees and leapt up; he dressed quickly in jeans and a tight-fitting t-shirt. He shrugged into a jacket and ran out the door.

He could have sworn that Holly had moved into the lounge. She was crouched on the windowsill, staring moodily out to sea. Yassen crept up behind her and tapped her shoulder.

She lashed out again, much like the way she had on the day they had agreed to get along. This time however, Yassen was ready. He caught her arm as it whistled through the air and twisted it gently but firmly behind her back.

"Way too slow," He whispered in her ear, letting go of her arm and stepping back. She smiled up at him, clearly uncomfortable.

"I didn't think you'd want to come," She said quietly. Yassen shrugged and sat down beside her.

"Well, I didn't want our friendship to end just like that." He snapped his fingers, "Plus I would have missed you even more if I hadn't said goodbye properly."

"It wouldn't be possible to miss you more than I'm going to miss you, whether you said goodbye or not." Her eyes filled with tears again and Yassen hugged her. She hesitated, and then hugged him back, pressing her face into his neck.

"Holly, the car's here, oh…" Jack stood awkwardly in the doorway, a slight smile tugging at his lips. He picked up her bags and left. Yassen gently disengaged her arms from his throat and took her hand.

"One last adventure?" he asked gently. She nodded and smiled, squeezing his hand.

They walked down the stairs and out into the bright January sunshine. Hunter stood talking to another man who, upon closer inspection, turned out to be Spider. He looked Yassen over as he came out and spoke quickly to Hunter.

Yassen was focusing mainly on Holly, but he noticed Spider. He noticed the way Jack and Laura stood so close as to be almost glued together. That made him smile, though in jealousy.

Holly was crying openly, clinging to Yassen's arm but also trying to pull away; torn between her home and the love she had for Yassen.

Jack called her and she let go of Yassen's arm, and went to talk to him and Laura. Hunter came over and stood beside Yassen.

"Well done for coming to see her off." Yassen shrugged, watching as Holly hugged first Laura, then Jack. She smiled through her tears at Yassen and Hunter as she walked back.

"Thanks for everything, sir," She said formally, holding out her hand. Hunter knocked it aside and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Don't be silly," He said. "Take care of yourself." Hunter let go of her and tactfully moved away as she turned to Yassen.

"I'm going to miss you," He whispered. She brushed a couple of tears away and wrapped her arms around him again. He looked down at her and, for the briefest instant, their lips met.

"I love you," Holly murmured and fled to the car. Spider accelerated away and up the hill.

Yassen waved until the car was out of sight, but he could scarcely see it anyway. Tears flowed down his cheeks and he could tell that he wasn't alone. Sobs came from behind him but he didn't turn. She was coming back. Any second…

Hunter laid a hand on his shoulder and turned him back to the hotel, even though the older man's body was racked with suppressed sobs. She was coming back…

**One more chapter… but I have an idea for my next fanfic! So mixed blessings ,really.**


	12. An ending, and a Beginning

**Last chapter guys…**

**One week later.**

Yassen carried his suitcase out to the car. Hunter was sitting in the driver's seat, ready to drive them up to the airport at Exeter. Laura gave him an awkward hug and Jack shook his hand.

Yassen looked out over the silent ocean. This place had almost become part of him. He turned away for the last time and slid into the passenger seat. Jack and Laura waved sadly as the car struggled up the steep hill and round the corner.

They reached the crest of the incline and Yassen looked back, tears prickling his eyes again. He wiped them away and opened his hand. An envelope nestled in his cupped palm.

He carefully opened it and three pieces of paper slid out. One was a photograph, him and Holly holding up targets and grinning at the camera. He gave a watery smile and unfolded the other two pieces of paper.

One was a quick note, scrawled untidily on a brochure for the hotel. Yassen recognised Jack's handwriting and ran his eyes over the page.

'Yassen, Holly gave this to me before she left to give to you. Good luck. Jack and Laura.' He smiled again and unfolded the last sheet of paper reverentially.

'Yassen, I hope that you like the photo. I got Hunter to get it developed. If Jack keeps his promise, you're on your way to Malagosto by now, good luck! You'll be amazing, whatever you decide to do. I'm going to miss the lot of you, but you most of all. I hope you have a good life, whatever happens make sure that you're happy.

All my love, Holly.'

Yassen smiled and held the paper against his heart.

The plane journey passed in an instant, he re-read the letter until he knew it by heart. When they touched down in Venice, Hunter led Yassen through the maze of canals and buildings to the sea. A sleek white yacht was waiting, cream leather deliciously cool in the heat.

The driver seemed to have come off the same assembly line as Spider; he wore a dark suit and sunglasses. Yassen was glad that Hunter was there, although he was far more formal than he had been in Cornwall. Conversation eventually petered out and they finished the journey in an uncomfortable silence.

The sand was a brilliant shade of gold, a gleaming wire between the water and the emerald tree line. A wooden jetty reached out to welcome them and a man in an immaculate white suit stood waiting. He helped to tie the boat up and then moved to help Yassen out of the boat.

Yassen ignored the proffered hand and pulled himself on one of the support posts. He was still holding Holly's letter and the photograph. The man shook hands with Hunter and set off along the jetty, carrying Yassen's huge suitcase as if it were feather.

Hunter laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Yassen, welcome to Malagosto." Behind them, the sun set, dying the sky blood red. Yassen walked off of the jetty and into the rest of his life.

**Well, there it is. I hope it's ok with you and I'm starting my next one ASAP thanks for reading and sticking with me!**

**PW**


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